Preparing and delivering
1 million
meals per year
ommunity Chef could not
To solve the issue, the councils came
easily prepare and de-
together with the vision of creating a pur-
liver more than 1 million
pose-built, state-of-the-art food production
meals a year to its 21 local
facility that could produce quality-assured
government customer-
meals to each council for distribution. In
shareholders as well as
2009, with the support of both the state and
hospitals, residential aged care, retirement
Commonwealth governments, Community
villages and care package clients without
Chef was born. It is a leading example of
effective material requirements planning.
a shared service model.
Community Chef is a social enterprise that
In November 2010, the award-winning
come into existence as a result of the far-
Community Chef kitchen produced the first
sighted vision of 20 Victorian local councils
meals for five of the council shareholders.
(increased to 23 since commencement) that
It now prepares and delivers more than 1
wanted to find a better way of providing
million meals a year to its 21 local govern-
high-quality, nutritionally sound, appeal-
ment customer-shareholders as well as
ing meals to people requiring a Meals On
hospitals, residential aged care, retirement
Wheels service.
villages and care package clients.
Increasing food standards regulation
Recipes are developed and meals pro-
plus a constantly growing client base with
duced at a purpose-built kitchen in Altona,
diverse dietary needs were making it hard
Melbourne, by a team of dedicated chefs
for small, individual, council-run kitchens
and cooks. Their focus is the provision of
to keep up with the continually evolving
nutritious, culturally sensitive and affordable
expectations and demands.
meals that taste delicious and that meal
26 | PREPARED FOOD - Oct/Nov 2015
www.preparedfood.com.au